Dødheimsgard Supervillain Outcast
Moonfog Productions FOGCD6037 April 16, 2007
By Jason Jordan
Dødheimsgard have weathered many line-up changes over the years, and several former members are immediately recognizable for the work theyve done with other bands. Itd be tedious and pointless to name them all here, though, so Ill just say that the Norwegians return partially intact with their first output since 1999s 666 International. As some predicted, Supervillain Outcast is an inconsistent release, occasionally offering tasty, avant-garde post-black metal, but overall lacking the ability to hold ones attention for the full 57 minutes, even aside from the obvious filler, which results in a frustrating follow-up.
Extracting the positive elements from Supervillain Outcast is a no-brainer high quality musical performances, speedy tempos, notable programming effects, songwriting and vocal/instrumental variation, et cetera. The group gets off to a good start with the uber-fast Vendetta Assassin, which, like other songs, has a robotic feel in place due to the synthesizers. Its evident, as it has been for some time, that programming is an essential component of latter-day Dødheimsgard. While coursing throughout the record, The Snuff Dreams Are Made Of does an excellent job of utilizing electronic effects to their futuristic, atmospheric potential. More than once, they ostensibly draw from fellow Norwegians Solefald see the tailend of The Snuff Dreams Are Made Of and elsewhere but never quite reach the genius that the above-mentioned duo have on numerous occasions.
Horrorizon repeats the chorus too much, clean-sung interlude Secret Identity accomplishes little to nothing, Apocalypticism repeats, you guessed it, the chorus too much, clean-sung interlude Chrome Balaclava accomplishes, right again, little to nothing, and the clean vocals in All Is Not Self are atrocious to the point of being unbearable. Oh, and clean-sung interlude Cellar Door, similar to its like-minded predecessors, is unnecessary too. Still, fast n furious numbers such as Foe X Foe, The Vile Delinquents, Unaltered Beast, Ghostforce Soul Constrictor, Supervillain Serum, and 21st Century Devil are worth looking into, at least momentarily, as they are in tune with the material found at the beginning of Supervillain Outcast, which ranges from fair to great. Even so, theres a lot that couldve been trimmed.
Of the 15 tracks, there are certainly some keepers. In the end, however, Supervillain Outcast is not a triumphant return, but an average one. Also, for what its worth, it seems older, experimental black metal has traditionally fared better than the modern stuff, as heard in early albums by Arcturus, Fleurety, Ved Buens Ende, and others. In fact, the latter two each housed a Dødheimsgard member for a certain amount of time .
Official Dødheimsgard Website
Official Moonfog Productions Website
Moonfog Productions FOGCD6037 April 16, 2007
By Jason Jordan
Dødheimsgard have weathered many line-up changes over the years, and several former members are immediately recognizable for the work theyve done with other bands. Itd be tedious and pointless to name them all here, though, so Ill just say that the Norwegians return partially intact with their first output since 1999s 666 International. As some predicted, Supervillain Outcast is an inconsistent release, occasionally offering tasty, avant-garde post-black metal, but overall lacking the ability to hold ones attention for the full 57 minutes, even aside from the obvious filler, which results in a frustrating follow-up.
Extracting the positive elements from Supervillain Outcast is a no-brainer high quality musical performances, speedy tempos, notable programming effects, songwriting and vocal/instrumental variation, et cetera. The group gets off to a good start with the uber-fast Vendetta Assassin, which, like other songs, has a robotic feel in place due to the synthesizers. Its evident, as it has been for some time, that programming is an essential component of latter-day Dødheimsgard. While coursing throughout the record, The Snuff Dreams Are Made Of does an excellent job of utilizing electronic effects to their futuristic, atmospheric potential. More than once, they ostensibly draw from fellow Norwegians Solefald see the tailend of The Snuff Dreams Are Made Of and elsewhere but never quite reach the genius that the above-mentioned duo have on numerous occasions.
Horrorizon repeats the chorus too much, clean-sung interlude Secret Identity accomplishes little to nothing, Apocalypticism repeats, you guessed it, the chorus too much, clean-sung interlude Chrome Balaclava accomplishes, right again, little to nothing, and the clean vocals in All Is Not Self are atrocious to the point of being unbearable. Oh, and clean-sung interlude Cellar Door, similar to its like-minded predecessors, is unnecessary too. Still, fast n furious numbers such as Foe X Foe, The Vile Delinquents, Unaltered Beast, Ghostforce Soul Constrictor, Supervillain Serum, and 21st Century Devil are worth looking into, at least momentarily, as they are in tune with the material found at the beginning of Supervillain Outcast, which ranges from fair to great. Even so, theres a lot that couldve been trimmed.
Of the 15 tracks, there are certainly some keepers. In the end, however, Supervillain Outcast is not a triumphant return, but an average one. Also, for what its worth, it seems older, experimental black metal has traditionally fared better than the modern stuff, as heard in early albums by Arcturus, Fleurety, Ved Buens Ende, and others. In fact, the latter two each housed a Dødheimsgard member for a certain amount of time .
Official Dødheimsgard Website
Official Moonfog Productions Website
